The Aaron Gordon hype train is beginning to depart

The nation is getting behind Aaron Gordon as he looks to back up his strong 2018 season. The hype train is only starting to get going.

Aaron Gordon was a bundle of potential when the Orlando Magic made him the fourth overall selection of the 2014 NBA Draft. With the Arizona Wildcats, everyone could see and feel his raw athleticism and potential.

The question was how long would it take for him to figure everything out in the NBA. There is a long list of supreme athletes like Gordon who struggled to make their way in the NBA.

It felt like Gordon was following that same path.

A mixture of an unstable organization — three coaches in his four seasons in the league, and now a fourth in five seasons — and injuries stunted his growth. The flashes were all there from his stellar performance in the 2016 NBA Slam Dunk Contest to the feats of athleticism he displayed during regular games.

It all never came together. Not really until last year.

Gordon averaged a career-high 17.6 points per game, increasing his scoring average by nearly five points per game. He shot a career-best 33.6 percent from beyond the arc, the first time he shot better than 30 percent from range in his career.

Gordon posted two 40-point games, four 30-point games and nine games of 25 points or more. He became a gifted scorer in a lot of ways. But still, he was trying to figure out his way around the league.

It was truly the first time Gordon looked comfortable on the floor. That is not so much a product of the Magic settling him at power forward. He still had plenty of work to do on the ball and on the perimeter. so the position change was not quite it.

Gordon had a healthy summer for the first time in his career last year. It gave him a full offseason to improve and work on his game. There was no jaw surgery (like after his first season when he showed tremendous progress in Summer League that got interrupted) or bruised ankle (like the one he suffered a few weeks before training camp 2017 season).

The one thing no one has questioned is how hard Gordon works. He has always put a lot into his game trying to piece together the raw athletic talent he has. Last year, it seemed to come together.

And, in the ever-forward-marching world of basketball analysis, now people want to see more.

So here are some more. Some more Aaron Gordon playing pickup with Kevin Durant in New York City a short while ago. He is putting in his work again this summer with, it seems, no slowing down:

And then there has been a stream of articles beginning to wonder just how much Gordon can grow in a single year and just what he can do with the Magic this year.

From Frank Urbina of HoopsHype ranking Gordon the fifth-best power forward in the NBA for this coming season, writing:

"Regardless, there’s no denying Gordon’s upside heading into next year. He’s an athletic specimen with the ball-handling chops of a guard, making him a nearly impossible cover for any traditional big man. What’s more, Gordon’s really turning into a solid playmaker, posting an 11.7 percent assist rate last year – a tremendous improvement over his rookie-season 6.3 percent assist rate."

Or Paolo Ugetti suggesting Gordon could fill out the Eastern Conference All-Star team, figuring him as the best bet for a Magic representative if the team is in position for a Playoff berth. It is a long shot, even he admits. Or the thinkpiece from Haley O’Shaughnessy of The Ringer ultimately taking Aaron Gordon over former Magic forward Tobias Harris.

There is a lot of excitement now for what Gordon might be able to do to expand his game.

He had his struggles for sure last year. He shot just 43.4 percent from the floor, the worst of his career.

Add into that his own struggles to end the season — he still averaged a robust 16.0 points per game in his final 40 games but shot a woeful 40.6 percent from the floor and 31.6 percent from beyond the arc.

Orlando Magic

And Gordon still had several minor injuries throughout the season. He had another run-in with the concussion protocol last season and a thigh contusion. It forced him to miss 24 games last season. Gordon is probably much more durable than his injury history might suggest. But it is still a specter that hangs over him.

The inefficiency he experienced last year too might have been a combination of a lot of things. He took the liberty of trying to play with a higher usage rate — he had a 24.3 percent usage rate for the season, but it jumped to 25.7 percent after the All-Star Break. He was forcing his shot a lot more and defenses piled up against him.

Some of that felt like necessary growing pains for a young player trying to figure things out in the league. Judging by his video during that pick-up run with Durant, Gordon has continued to work and grow those skills. A big key for Gordon will be just how much those skills will grow and how much he learned about when to manage his own forays with helping facilitate for the team.

Former coach Frank Vogel liked to say Aaron Gordon’s best offense came “within the flow of the offense.” Figuring out that flow will be part of the trick for Gordon in the next stage of his development.

Gordon is 22 years old and still has plenty of room to grow. That is the amazing thing. He just signed a four-year deal to stay with the Magic. He will not be hitting his prime until that contract ends. Orlando’s investment in him was an investment in their future — both immediate and future.

Everyone seems to be on board with what that future might bring.

Yet, that mystery still remains. Gordon has had bumps and bruises on the road. It is still unclear where his ceiling might be.

Gordon is plenty confident he can reach those heights. And he is giving fans at least some evidence of the work he has put in.

And everyone is getting on board excited to see what he can do in 2019.

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated when Aaron Gordon finished second in the Slam Dunk Contest and his rank in the HoopsHype article. Both errors have been corrected.